A Challenging New Year

News on the health and job fronts will mean a challenging new year for us. But we had an immediate challenge on New Year's Day. Another of the Hawke's Bay Have-a-Lifers, Pedro, arrived, plus we had Niggle from Huapai, and their respective spouses, partners and families. We had to put up some vinos to challenge these newbies, as well as the arrivals from the day before.

To set the ball rolling, we opened a Methuselah (6.0 Litre) of Veuve Clicquot Champagne Brut NV that SWMBO won as a work performance prize way back in 2003. With around 15 drinkers on hand, it meant just over half a bottle per person equivalent. Sitting in the afternoon sun, on holiday, it took less than an hour to polish off! Nice gentle complex development, a little less effervescence, it was a good bottle indeed. The big cork came out nicely. The Dragon ended up taking cork and bottle home to Hawke's Bay. Ah, this will make memories.

Then a storm was cooked up, and with dinner, we had several flights of wines to look at. Rieslings first. The 2007 Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Kabinett showed it's high vintage rating with ripe, full fruitiness. Screw cap too. 2008 Pegasus Bay 'Bel Canto' Dry Riesling even fuller and richer with tropical notes. This will be a good drinker all its life. But the star for many of us was the 2004 Richmond Grove Watervale with its super refinement and fine toasty complexities. When the Aussies do it well, they do it well. Grunter brought another doozy. A 2007 Domain Felines Jourdan Picpoul de Pinet Languedoc. Dry, crisp and surprisingly fruity for a little-recognised Rhone white varietal. A Nick Nobilo made 2007 Ashwood Estate Pinot Gris was super rich and full with all the winemaker additions melding in now. Looks good. And a 2005 Bilancia Pinot Grigio, subtle, some complexity, but a little less out there.

The Pinot Noirs were a strong group. From Canada, Niggle's 2006 Mission Hill Reserve Okanagan Valley was medium weight and all the things you expect a New World Pinot Noir to be. 2007 Craggy Range Zebra Vineyard, from Bendigo in Central Otago was full, sweet, dense and dark fruited. Grunter's 2005 Sileni 'EV' was also a full and dense wine, showing plenty of structure for aging. Two Church Road Reserve Syrahs should have been a fascinating comparison. The Champion Trophy winner, the 2007 was elegant, perfumed and spicy. The 2006 was fuller, meatier and more solid. But our bottle corked. So really hard to make a proper comparison. Medium weight, 'austere' reds would be easily overlooked, but here, people found favourites. The 2007 Redmetal 'Erinview' Merlot/Franc was elegant and everything it should be. It will never be a show winner, but a great drink. SWMBO found the 2006 Villa Caffagio Chianti Classico to her taste, tight and dry and fine featured. Whereas I loved the 2005 Torres 'Celeste' Ribera del Duero with its rich deep, dark and sweet Tempranillo fruit.

The Rhone bracket was the brettanomyces bracket. A 1998 Belle 'Louis Belle' Crozes-Hermitage was rich, robust and aggressive, the brett gone wild on a coarser structure. Then two 1989 wines from Chateauneuf-du-Pape. The Beaucastel regular was fragrant and complex, lighter and sweeter. A touch of brett in the background, acceptable for quite some time in glass. The bigger, more broody Beaucastel 'Hommage' blacker, more dense and richer, with the brett more in your face. It worked, though and both the Beaucastels were good drinks. Gordy took the latter wine away with him and reported no brett! Strange how we see this affliction. Then a pair of old kiwi Cabernets, from the good 1985 vintage. Cooks 'Premium' was stalky, thin, dried-out and dilute. The gold medal winning 'Cooks 'Private Bin' from Fernhill only a notion better. Better left alone was the general consensus.

Sticky ends. The 1991 Egon Muller Wiltingener braune Kuppe Auslese was 'glory be!' with its freshness, fruit, kero complexity and general all-round balance. It was consumed quickly. Thanks to a swap with Bottle Bob! More gutsy and compenentry was the 1995 Ch. Lafaurie Peyraguey Sauternes. Waxy, brulee, oak, VA. Some saw oxidation. It was a little disjointed. I could handle it. Pedro, who brought it couldn't. For the strong-of-stomach, there was a Lustau Single Cask Dry Oloroso. Dark, dry, complex nutty/aldehyde and raisined fruit. The best wine there, but no-one in a state to enjoy it. Easier, but more commercial was the Grahams 'The Tawny', all there, but not enough to make a big impact. Still a nice one though.

Many took up the challenge. Some fell by the wayside. But it was a fun day.